Coutta notches top-10 finish at Glenn Carlson Las Vegas Invite

LAS VEGAS, Nev. (December 19, 2022) – The Milligan University women's bowling team finished 14th of 28 teams at the Glenn Carlson Las Vegas Invitational on Monday and Tuesday.

The event marked the largest Tier 1 tournament in the program's first-year history, Milligan finished six spots out of bracket play against teams from NCAA Division I, Division II, Division III, NAIA and junior college. The Buffs combined to total 7,946 pins across nine qualifying games over the two-day event.

Elizabeth Coutta notched a top-10 individual finish with 1,785 total pins across nine games to finish ninth overall. She posted an average of 198.33 with five games over 200 and a high of 245.

"For Elizabeth, this was the tournament we've been waiting for," said head coach Brian Rickert. "She has the potential to be one of the best bowlers in the country but has battled illness and injuries the entire semester. She's feeling healthy for the first time and came so close to getting the program's second all-tournament selection at a Tier 1 tournament against the top bowlers in all of collegiate bowling."

Brianna Rickert joined Coutta in the top 50 as she cleared 1,641 pins (182.33 average) to finish 36th.

Despite competing in just eight individual games, Emily Cheesman and Taylor Davis achieved top-80 finishes. Both players logged an identical pin count of 1,355 (169.38) to finish 78th and 79th overall.

"I definitely don't think we're satisfied with our finish," said Rickert. "We had way too many missed spares which was uncharacteristic for us. It's going to be a point of emphasis in our next tournament here in Vegas and I'm expecting some better results."

The Buffs continue their Vegas trip with the Tier 1 Collegiate Shootout on Dec. 20-21.